Synopsis

Cooked is a five-part animated comedy about the ghost of Captain Cook and his friend Daringa the goat.

The Endeavour has been sitting motionless, shackled to the docks of Darling Harbour. But in 2020 the prime minister announced that she will once again sail the seas. Unwittingly though the PM awakens the ghost of ship's dead Captain – James Cook.

Cook is accompanied by Mahnra the immortal goat. She is fierce – but unlike Cook – she's not a ghost. Mahnra was once a young Gweagal woman ^[1] whose spirit became trapped inside the body of a goat when she was shot and killed by Wyatt Gildt – the evil man who is believed to be the source of a curse. ^[2]

The curse is a malevolence brought ashore on the Endeavour all those years ago. It still plagues the nation to this day, rearing its head in many forms, possessing individuals to show symptoms of patriotic fervour, extreme sensitivity and assumed privilege.

Cook and Mahnra steal the Endeavour and travel around Australia in search of a cure for Wyatt Gildt, to lift the curse and unbind the affected citizens from its grips. To do so, they must consult the oldest surviving knowledge keepers; the First Nations people and spirits from the Dreaming Knowledge Institute.

Will they succeed?

Jake Duczynski's new animation series turns the government's memorialisation plan and the legacy of Captain Cook on its head. It is a satirical response to the Australian government’s plan to re-sail The Endeavour in 2020.

I wanted to create a series that had plenty of hard truths, with a sugary coat of comedy.

— Jake Duczynski ^[3]

Every dollar spent on this project is guaranteed to remove 800 ppm of Wyatt Gildt contaminant.

— James Hackett, co-writer ^[4]

Episodes

Episode 1

Captain Cook and Mahnra, an Indigenous woman stuck inside the body of a goat, plan to steal The Endeavour from Darling Harbour.

Episode 2

Captain Cook and Mahnra steal the Endeavour and escape Sydney Harbour while being pursued by the police and some aqua bogans.

Episode 3

In a hide out, Cook and Mahnra drink their sorrows away before being visited by something pretty spirity.

Episode 4

Mahnra and Cook are thrust into the DKI. They are met by the all-knowing, all-seeing monolithic spirit head, who has big plans for Cook.

Episode 5

Cook, Mahnra and Elder Spirit infiltrate Australia Day. Cook gets naked, Shannon Noll is sacrificed and the Prime Minister throws a tantrum.